Words by: Gary Horstkorta
I?m sure many of you will remember the advertising slogan ?You meet the nicest people on a Honda? which the company used in 1963 for the first time in the U.S. As a result of that advertising campaign, Honda motorcycle sales took off and they were on their way to establishing a nationwide dealer network and becoming a highly popular brand.
Seven years later in 1970, Honda introduced their first car into the U.S., the small N600 powered by a motorcycle engine and today of course they are one of the most popular car brands world wide. Now lets turn back the calendar to 1962, only two years after Honda established an American Division to sell motorcycles but the brand was relatively unknown. Only motorcycle racing enthusiasts knew the name based on Honda?s international racing success yet the company was looking ahead and planning their strategy for the U.S. market.
In the Fall of 1962, Honda?s founder and president, Soichiro Honda, paid a visit to San ...

Words by: Gary Horstkorta – June 2016
Sometimes when a manufacturer gives a specific car model a somewhat sedate or non-aggressive name, it doesn?t reflect what the car is capable of on the road or track. Take for example the Nissan Fairlady a name which sounds better suited for a nice, comfortable four door sedan which was the designation in Japan of a car that would cause a sensation when it was shown to the world in 1969. When introduced to the U.S. market in 1970 it carried a different designation (as an export model), the Datsun 240Z, a car which would become very popular for the street and a staple in SCCA road racing for several decades.
Devendorf leads Leary – IMSA 2.5 July 30 1978
Upon it?s debut in the U.S. potential buyers flocked to Datsun showrooms to grab a look at this stylish new two door sports car. It came standard with a 2.4 liter, inline, six-cylinder engine with twin SU carbs putting out 151 horsepower; a four speed manual transmission; di ...